Downtown development

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Construction cranes are no longer an unusual site in downtown Hamilton and today a new one was erected beside the Lister Block on James North. The developer is a local union that helped restore the Lister Block and today Liuna officials revealed more about plans for the new high-rise.

The old building was unsafe and torn down six years ago, but the facade was saved and it will go back on. Behind the facade will rise a 20-storey building meant to house students. The city took over the Lister Block but Liuna still owns the land around it.

“Our intention is to reconstruct the William Thomas building, built in 1855 and 160 years later it’s going back up again.” Joe Mancinelli.

The tower will be filled mostly with dorm-type units that have shared kitchen and bath areas for a total of 375 people. Liuna’s Joe Mancinelli says rentals keep bringing income, unlike condos and with five kids in their 20s, he knows how hard it is to find affordable housing. The city says students were at the top of its wish list for downtown.

Other similar projects nearby are supportive, according to the city. There is enough demand for rental property and the more good options there are for people to live in, the more people want to live in an area.